A friend and I had gone into Mexico with gifts for an orphanage in the
small town of La Mision, an hour’s drive south of the border below San Diego.
After we’d unloaded the car, one of the staff asked if we’d
like to tour the facility. We would. So she took us from building to building, telling us
about the orphanage. It housed 80 to 90 young Mexican children, who either had no mothers
or fathers or had been left by parents who couldn’t care for them.
We looked at classrooms, dormitories, play areas, and a chapel. At
lunchtime we watched all the children file into the dining hall, sit down at several long
tables, and, in unison, sing the blessing on their food!
As we toured, my friend, who rarely attended church, asked our escort
how the orphanage was supported. "Well," she replied, "When we’re
running low on something, we just pray and tell God what we need. Then God tells the
people in some church up in the States. And then they bring it to us, like you just
did."
My friend looked so incredulous it was hard not to laugh!
Later, as we drove on into Ensenada and then back to San Diego, we
asked ourselves: Would I have the faith to live like that?
And, when God’s "still, small voice" speaks to us
about helping our "neighbors" in an orphanage, or next door, are we sensitive
enough to listen and obey?
Immigrants, orphans, and widows were the Bible’s largest groups of
poor.
Today, UNICEF says over 160,000,000 children are orphans.
In Scripture, orphans are often called the "fatherless."
For immigrants, other Biblical words include "aliens,"
"foreigners," "migrants,"," "travelers," and
"visitors, and "strangers."
Jeremiah 14:8 questions why God had become "as a
stranger to us, as one passing through the land who is merely stopping for the
night?" Job 5:15 asserts "I have never turned away a
stranger but have opened my doors to all." 1 Timothy 5:10 asks "has
she been kind to strangers as well as to other Christians?"
"Aliens" and "foreigners" included the
Samaritans, whose ancestors were mixed Israelite/Assyrian (2 Kings 17:24-41). In
Luke 17:17, Jesus asked "Didn’t I heal ten men? ... Does only this
foreigner [a Samaritan] return to give glory to God?"
"Migrants" may or may not be immigrants. My own
100%-American family became homeless migrants for five years when our work took us to a
new city every week.
"Visitors" can be guests, foreigners, aliens,
or strangers. Abraham told the men of Heth "Here I am, a visitor in a foreign
land, with no place to bury my wife. Please sell me a piece of ground for this
purpose" (Genesis 23:4).
How does God view immigrants, orphans and widows?
The Lord loves and welcomes them. And he firmly expects his children to
share his caring outlook.
"He loves foreigners and gives them food and clothing."
(Deut. 10:18)
"The Christian who is pure and without fault, from God the
Father’s point of view, is the one who takes care of orphans and widows..."
(James l:27; also 1 Tim. 5:3-5, Acts 6:1-5)
More Scriptures: Exod. 22:21-24, 23:9, Deut. 10:19, 16:12, 24:18,
24:22, Job 5:15-16, Ps. 68:5, 146:5-9, Prov. 15:25, Jer. 49:11, Hosea 14:3.
"Orphans ... throughout the world ... live ... largely unnoticed, untended, and
uncared for." (Melissa Irwin’s blog, Jasper Walls, 8/16/2010.)
The Lord reminded Israel to treat immigrants fairly, since they’d
been immigrants in Egypt. The US is also a nation of immigrants. So doesn’t he expect
the same of us?
Unlike us, God says most immigrants are good: "For the
Lord loves good men. He protects the immigrants ..." (Ps. 146:8-9.)
US Justice Department data agree. In ten years of very high illegal
immigration, Arizona’s violent-crime rate fell 23%. Property crime was down
28%. Across the US we saw "the most rapid drop in crime rates in the nation’s
history." Daniel Griswold of the conservative Cato Institute asks whether we’ve
"vastly overrated" the danger from honest immigrants who come here at great risk
to support their families and try hard to stay out of trouble.
Immigrants face petty nuisances too. About 1900 my grandfather, himself
a Danish immigrant, worked as a "timber cruiser" for a large lumber company.
He’d spend weeks walking through huge tracts of land in northern Minnesota,
Wisconsin, and Michigan, estimating the usable board-feet of timber there.
After one assignment he and his partner came into Superior, Wisconsin
to outfit for their next trip. They bought supplies on Saturday. Sunday morning they asked
each other, "We don’t leave till tomorrow. What are we going to do today?"
There weren’t many choices. Radio and television didn’t exist. No ball games
were scheduled. All stores were closed on Sundays. Finally, desperate, they decided to
window-shop.
At that time many Superior stores were owned by recently-arrived
European immigrants who lived in the rear or upstairs. Gramp and Hanson stopped at the
first business, studied the window, tried the door to make sure the store wasn’t
open, then moved on.
As they paused before the next window, they heard the key turn in the
first store’s lock. The owner leaned out, beckoned, and in heavily accented English
said "Come in, boysss. I vants to show you some’tin."
The proprietor showed them a "wonderful buy." The men talked
awhile, thanked him, then left.
They looked at each other. Would that work again? They rattled the next
store’s doorknob and walked on a few steps. Sure enough, that owner, too, unlocked
the door and invited them to see a "great bargain." So did the next proprietor,
and the next.
Since the "bargain" was almost always a watch or overcoat,
the men decided to specialize. One would "buy" the coats, the other the watches.
At each store they’d bargain the immigrant owner as low as possible. Then they’d
offer him half that.
If he said "no," they’d say "Sorry, goodby,"
and walk out.
If he said "yes," they’d tell him "Well, it
can’t be any good, or you wouldn’t take that!" And then they’d
leave!
They’d solved the problem of what to do with their free day.
On Monday, as they left, they remembered some supplies they’d
forgotten on Saturday. They entered one of the same stores, this time intending to buy.
The proprietor’s wife parted the curtains at the store’s
rear, saw who her customers were, waved, and shouted "GOOD-bye! GOOD-bye!"
What are some Biblical glimpses of orphans’ and widows’ lives?
"We are orphans – our fathers dead, our mothers widowed. We must even pay
for water to drink; our fuel is sold to us at the highest of prices. We bow our necks
beneath the victors’ feet; unending work is now our lot. We beg for bread ... We went
into the wilderness to hunt for food, risking death from enemies. Our skin was black from
famine ... Even aged men are treated with contempt. They take away the young men to grind
their grain, and the little children stagger beneath the heavy loads." (Lamentations
5: 3-6, 9-10, 12-13.)
"There is no justice for the poor, the widows, and orphans. Yes, it is true that
they even rob the widows and fatherless children. (Isaiah 10:2.)
"The wife of one of the seminary students came to Elisha to tell
him of her husband’s death ... he had owed some money when he died, and now the
creditor was demanding it back. If she didn’t pay, he said he would take her two sons
as his slaves.
"What shall I do?"
Elisha asked. "How much food do you have in the house?"
"‘Nothing at all, except a jar of olive oil,’ she
replied.
"‘Then borrow many pots and pans!’ he instructed.
‘Go into your house with your sons .... Then pour olive oil from your jar into the
pots and pans!’
"So she did. Her sons brought the pots and pans to her, and she
filled one after another! Soon every container was full to the brim!
"‘Bring me another jar,’ she said to her sons.
"‘There aren’t any more!’ they told her. And then
the oil stopped flowing!
"The prophet ... said to her, ‘Go and sell the oil and pay
your debt, and there will be enough money left for you and your sons to live
on!’" (2 Kings 4:1-7)
Do miracles like that still happen? Once when I had $90 for
groceries for a week (about half enough), I spent $60, then checked my wallet. It still
held $60! Later, we bought two packages of frozen chicken. When we opened the freezer the
next day, there were three. My wife and daughter bought cloth to make two skirts. When
they unrolled it, there was enough for four.
Many scholars think Mary was widowed before Jesus’ ministry began,
leaving Jesus, the oldest son, as her primary support. So, when Jesus faced death, he
provided for her:
"Standing near the cross were Jesus’ mother, Mary,
his aunt, the wife of Cleopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw his mother standing
there beside me, his close friend, he said to her, ‘He is your son.’
"And to me he said, ‘She is your mother!’ And from then
on I took her into my home." (John 19:25-27)
More Scriptures: Ruth 2:8-11, Job 24:2-3, 24:9-11, 29:12-16,
Acts 9:36-39.
How did Israel "love" immigrants, orphans, and widows?
God’s methods were varied, practical, and creative.
Creativity took unique forms – and still can today.
In Orlando I worked with a night-vision engineer whose creativity let
him drive in the first "Cannonball Run," the famous, thoroughly unsanctioned,
New York to Los Angeles race that inspired the Burt Reynolds movie. When ‘Ned’
and two friends learned about the race, they were eager to enter. But they had one
problem: no car.
Their solution? They began calling New York "driveaway"
companies. They found a Cadillac scheduled to go to Los Angeles. Perfect!
They met the owner. They promised to obey all speed limits and only
drive a certain number of hours each day. Then they drove a steady 105 mph around the
clock! They didn’t win, thanks to five police stops and a wrong LA freeway exit. But
their creativity did let them drive the race. (Afterwards they waited several days
to deliver the car so the owner wouldn’t be suspicious.)
The Old Testament’s programs for immigrants, orphans, and widows
provided creatively (but honestly) for food, land, and justice.
Immigrants were treated like citizens and entitled to justice.
"Do not take advantage of foreigners in your land; do not
wrong them. They must be treated like any other citizen; love them as yourself, for
remember that you too were foreigners in the land of Egypt." (Lev.19:33-34)
"Justice must be given to migrants and orphans, and you must never
accept a widow's garment in pledge of her debt." (Deut. 24:17)
"Distribute the land as an inheritance for yourselves and for the
foreigners who live among you with their families. All children born in the land –
whether or not their parents are foreigners – are to be considered citizens and have
the same rights your own children have. All these immigrants are to be given land."
(Ezek. 47: 22-23.)
Also read: Deut. 1:14-16, 10:17-19.
Part of the harvest was left for the poor.
"If, when reaping your harvest, you forget to bring in a
sheaf from the field, don't go back after it. Leave it for the migrants, orphans, and
widows; then the Lord your God will bless and prosper all you do. When you beat the olives
from your olive trees, don't go over the boughs twice; leave anything remaining for the
migrants, orphans, and widows. It is the same for the grapes in your vineyard; don't glean
the vines after they are picked, but leave what's left for those in need." (Deut.
24:19-21)
Also read: Lev. 23:22, 25:2-7.
Israel gave to the poor and included them in special events.
"The Festival of Weeks ... is a time to rejoice before the
Lord ... And don't forget to include the local Levites, foreigners, widows, and orphans.
Invite them to accompany you to the celebration at the sanctuary..
"Another celebration, the Festival of Shelters ... will be a happy
time of rejoicing ... include the Levites, foreigners, orphans, and widows of your
town." (Deut. 16:9-14)
Also read: Deut. 14:27-29, 26:1-3, 26:11-13.
How do groups like the Bible’s "immigrants, orphans and
widows" fare today?
Not well. Many widows and senior citizens feel in desperation they
can’t "make it" on their fixed incomes. A swimming-pool salesman who’d
worked in a grocery store told me he’d changed jobs "because I saw all these
senior citizens buying canned cat food. I knew many of them personally, and knew they
didn’t have cats. Cat food was the only meat they could afford."
40% of immigrants in a 2009 study had wages stolen by employers. One
lady was jailed for merely asking for her pay. Others had savings stolen by police at
traffic stops. 77% of women immigrants said their bosses sexually harassed them. Some
rapists weren’t arrested because the victims were immigrants.
Many single mothers earn inadequate incomes. And their "exes"
often fail to pay child support. Several whom we’ve known worked two jobs, but still
couldn’t take their kids to the doctor. And the mothers’ long hours meant their
children were home alone, where they easily got into trouble. Others, facing eviction with
their children because their jobs didn’t cover the rent, resorted to getting
financial help by taking in boyfriends – who often abused the kids.
In 2008, 26.3% of all US children 19 or younger (about 21,500,000)
lived in single-parent homes (per the Statistical Abstract of the US). That’s a
mission field all by itself!
10,000,000 children suffer domestic violence in the US every year,
according to the Family Justice Center Alliance. One in every three to four women are
touched by domestic violence. Sexual assault crimes are dramatically underreported.
Restraining orders mean little. Many states have too few foster homes and too little money
to run them well.
Many Family Justice Centers sponsor "Camp Hopes" (summer
camps and mentoring programs) for children of domestic violence. "We show these kids
love at an early age and let them know how special they are. We would rather show them
love now than see them continue the cycle of abuse."
All these kids need people who’ll invest time and love.
In one neighborhood, we felt that meant us. We began with three kids,
and gave them all the time, love, and self-worth we could. We took pictures and made them
photo albums. We gave one older boy and younger girl a Bible, plus players with worship
CD’s.
On one boy’s birthday, our daughter promised him a brownie if
he’d stop by after school. He did – and brought seven friends!
We fixed pancake breakfasts. We taught some the kids to say grace. One
four-year-old girl’s first prayer was "Jesus, thank you for eating."
One week we were sick and couldn’t fix breakfast. One boy looked
especially disappointed. So we asked how many normally got breakfast. Of the nine there
that morning, four got nothing unless we fed them!
Some of them came to our evening family devotions (prayer and worship
music). When we prayed, one girl wanted to pray first. And she loved dancing to the gospel
choruses.
We were delighted when one boy sang "Our God is an Awesome
God" at the top of his lungs at the school bus stop!
Just before Christmas we held a party for all the kids. Thirteen came,
plus four parents. Our decorations included a banner that read "Happy Birthday,
Jesus!" When they saw it, two of the kids asked us "Who’s Jesus?"
And we saw "a little child lead them." One day we taught
6-year-old ‘Katie’ the chorus "Jesus Loves Me." She loved it! So much
that she turned to our son and said "Let’s go sing that to everybody!"
Normally outgoing, Bill was suddenly shy and embarrassed. "But I don’t know
those people!" Katie replied "It’ll be OK, Bill. You’ll see. Come
on." So they walked through the neighborhood, knocking on doors. When people
answered, Katie told them "We have a song for you!" And the neighborhood was
serenaded with "Jesus Loves Me, This I Know!"
Far too many orphans and other children become victims of sex trafficking. Vanished,
by mystery writer Tess Garritsen, asserts that over 50,000 young women, some only
children, are victims of sexual slavery in the US, trafficked in from abroad and then
forced to work unwillingly as prosititutes. About 1/3 of all trafficked women in Thailand
are children. Similar conditions exist in many countries worldwide.
UNICEF says as many as 2,000,000 children are trafficked into prostitution yearly. Sex
trafficking has devastating consequences for minors, including long-lasting trauma,
disease (including HIV/AIDS), drug addiction, unwanted pregnancy, malnutrition, social
ostracism, and possible death.
Anne Jackson saw it first-hand in a trip to Moldova and Russia with
Children’s Hope Chest. She says many orphanages can’t care for childen until
they’re old enough to live safely on their own. In Moldova they must leave at age 15.
They’re given money, but not enough to rent a room for even a month. They easily fall
prey to traffickers. (Flowerdust.net, April 6-13, 2010).
One morning Anne’s guide took her group to a pleasant-looking
restaurant in an attractive neighborhood, and then told them "this cafe is the main
hub for girls that are trafficked out of Moldova!"
Orphans and girls who have finished 9th grade (especially
from abusive, alcoholic, or unattended homes), must find work. But jobs are scarce. The
foreigners who own that cafe hire the girls. They are "guaranteed" promotions or
transfers to other restaurants. Instead, the girls are drugged, kidnapped, and smuggled to
other countries with their identity papers changed – and put to work as prostitutes.
Others are lured through ads for apartments or "real" jobs.
Many of those ads are false. The "interview" is just a chance to kidnap the
girls – and usually succeeds.
Anne says "Most of these orphans end up kidnapped and working in
other countries, making pennies a day for sexual services ... Not knowing how to escape,
being violated and told they’re worthless, and that nobody cares, they see no hope
– no reason to escape. Some commit suicide ... Moldova is a small country, and 30,000
women and children disappear every year without a trace."
She concludes "This is a subject we must continue to stare in the
face and say ... this can not happen ... Because if we know about it ... we’re
responsible to do something about it."
What sorts of blessings did the Bible promise those who cared for
immigrants, orphans and widows?
"Then the Lord your God will bless and prosper all you
do." (Deut. 24: 19.)
God pledged to deliver Israel, give kings to sit on David’s
throne, and bring prosperity if the nation would "Be fair-minded. Do what is
right! Help those in need of justice! ... Protect the rights of aliens and immigrants,
orphans and widows." (Jeremiah 22:3-4.)
Also read: Isa. 16:3-5.
What curses did God pronounce on those who didn’t "love"
immigrants, orphans and widows?
"They refuse justice to orphans and the rights of the
poor. "Should I sit back and act as if nothing is going on?" The Lord God asks.
"Shouldn’t I punish a nation such as this? (Jer. 5:26-29.)
More Scriptures: Exod. 22:22-24, Deut. 27:19, Job 6:25-27, 22:4-6,
22:9-11, 24:20-21, 31:16-17, 31:21-23, Ps. 94:4-7, Isa. 1:16-17, 1:23-27, Jer. 5:26-29,
7:3-7, 22:3-5, Ezek. 22:2, 22:7-9, 22:13-16, 22:30-31,Mic. 2:9-10 Zech. 7:8-14, Mal. 3:5,
Mark 12:28-40.
Would we let Jesus be treated this way? He said "When you did it to these ... you
were doing it to me." (Matthew 25:40.)
